The Way You Hold Me
by WellThatWasInteresting
Summary: So Derek and Meredith are teens; Meredith with a drunk Dad and an over-worked Mom, Derek with a stuck-up family. They both want to get away, and they need each other to do so.
1. Chapter 1: A Stranger's Hangout

**Hey, guys! I hope you enjoy this...It's kind of...different(?) then my other sotry, but I'm hoping it works out. Plleeeaseee review on this one. I kind of plan on having Meredith as the girl with the alcoholic Dad and over-worked Mom. Derek's kind of the rich priveleged kid who wants to get away from it all. **

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_So we lay our head down,_

_tune out the noise,_

_avoid all the others,_

_patch up the voids. _

Nothing ever changed around here, nothing. I woke up at the same time, to the same noise that I always did. Though now, the screaming of my parents seemed more like white noise than anything else.

_Always the same. _

I kept my eyes shut against my pillow and tried to block the noise out so I could get some sleep for once. Dad had been coming home drunk lately, like he used to. My earliest memories were those of Dad coming home in a drunken rage and punching a hole through the door, or screaming at my Mom to 'go ahead and call the cops.' Not that it ever worked.

_I cried when Dad tried to barge into the house, slamming into the door when he found it dead-bolted. I cried when the police pulled up with their blue lights flashing. I cried when Dad screamed at my Mom and when she screamed back. I sobbed even harder when my brother, Alex, wrapped his arms protectively around me to pull me away when Dad took down one police officer and two more lunged on top of him. _

I shook my head violently to clear the awful thoughts from my head and wrapped my pillow around my head. Things were going down the drain again, like they always did. Dad would come home from a 'successful' year at rehab, and things would be great for a while. When I was younger, I saw our family as normal during the months when Dad was sober. I made him go everywhere with me, just so I could tell the other kids that he was my Dad.

Nothing was normal around here, though. You could practically feel the tension under the surface of our 'normal' lives. My Mom, Alex, and I would wait for the disappointing day that Dad walked in reeking of booze. Dad would wait for the day that he could resist no longer, though he felt guilty, but he would care less and less as the shots went down.

"_C'mon, we'll go for a walk to the park!" Dad smiled as he said it, and I smiled back. _

"_How old are you now, Mer?" he asked._

"_Six!" I giggled back, though I now wonder if he really forgot, "You know that, Daddy!"_

"_Yes I do! But I wanted to make sure you were a big girl and could make it to the park with me!"_

"_I can, I can!" I jumped up and down with pent up energy as he slipped my backpack over my arms. _

"_Daddy…" I hesitated, slowing down some on the side of the road. "We aren't going to the park!"_

"_Sure we are hun! We just need to make a quick pit-stop!" _

"_Oh where?" I questioned, always the curious one. _

"_The gas station. Aren't you thirsty?"_

"_I guess…" I quickened my pace, anxious to get done so we could play at the park. If only I had known, there would be no trip to the park that day. If only I had known that my Father planned on using me as a mule for his alcohol that day, and that we wouldn't return home until well-after dark that night with my Dad using me as a crutch in his drunken stupor. His words still rang in my ear after all these years. _

"_Don't tell your Mommy, Mer. This is our special secret, and we don't want her knowing how thirsty I got."_

Over nine years later, and things hadn't changed a bit- though my brother seemed to care less. I heard the sounds of my Mom striking my Dad across the face, and I knew there would be no sleep for me tonight. I sighed as I slid my window open and pulled on my Chacos, ready for a night on the streets. I had no regrets about leaving during times like this-even if my Dad was an angry drunk, he'd never hit my Mom.

I dropped down to the ground and pondered for a minute on knocking on my brother's window to invite him along, but decided against it in the end. I walked anywhere and everywhere trying to decide on a place to sit and rest until dawn. I finally decided on heading to the playground, as there were several cozy places to sleep there.

When I finally got to the top of the hill that looked down on the playground, I had the feeling that I was being watched. I looked around, suddenly frightened, and gasped when my eyes clashed with another pair, ice-blue. There was a boy sitting on the swing, and he was smiling at me.


	2. Chapter 2: A Stranger's Touch

**A/N: I really like the few reviews that I got this morning and last night. They made me smile. :] Anyways, here's the second chapter. I can't promise daily updates, but this chapter just kind of came to me throughout the day. I really hope everyone likes it!**

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I warily, very warily, made my way down to the playground. His smile grew slightly before he stood up from the swing, tossing the chains behind him.

"Do I know you?" I asked, keeping plenty of distance between us-or trying to anyways.

He stepped closer, until it was almost uncomfortable, and I took another step back. The smile slid from his face before he answered, "No, I don't think so anyways; I don't live near here."

"Then why are you at the playground?" I asked curiously.

"It has some pretty comfy places to sleep, don't you think?" he asked, shooting me a wink.

"Yeah I guess…Well I'm gonna go…" I tried to turn away from him, but he caught my arm.

"Don't go on account of me; I just come here when I can't take my house anymore."

"Me too," I answered, narrowing an eye; his story sure did seem a lot like my own.

"Care to tell me your name?" he asked, the grin back in full force.

"Meredith." I answered, refusing to elaborate any further.

"Nice to meet you, Meredith; I'm Derek Shepherd. I live over in Mountain Shadows."

_Wow, so he's a rich boy._

"Well…I live that way"; I directed his eyes with my thumb.

"So I assumed," he chuckled.

"So why were you smiling at me? When I came down to the playground?"

"Well it's always nice to see a pretty face," He smiled even bigger, and I really noticed how pretty _he_ was. He had thick, black hair that demanded attention, harsh-blue eyes, a muscular chest, and a knowing grin. I blushed when my eyes, once again, met his, and I knew that _he_ knew I had been appraising him.

"Well anyways, I'll go; I don't want you to leave because of me," he shrugged and started back towards the road.

"Wait!" I called, mentally slapping myself. _What are you doing? He could be a total creep! Just let him go!_ I couldn't though; there was just something about his personality, the way he carried himself.

He turned around, grin in place, and made his way back to me.

"You're a predictable girl, Meredith, "he wrapped his right arm around my shoulders, and I couldn't help but lean in to him. He smelled woodsy, but in a good way.

_What am I doing?_

"You're latching onto a complete stranger, and…smelling him?" He laughed, and I blushed and pulled away.

"Sorry…didn't mean to say that out loud."

"Of course you didn't," he winked again. I arched my eyebrows in confusion and he reached up and smoothed the wrinkle in my forehead with his thumb. "I like you, Meredith; you're pretty cool."

"Thanks?" this guy was really weird.

"Tell me your story."

"What?" I asked.

"I wanna know why you are here, in the middle of the night. You should be at home, sleeping in a nice bed."

"You know…I could ask you the same question." We took a seat on a bench, closer than two strangers should have been comfortable with.

"Fine, I'll be a gentleman and tell you my story. But I expect yours too. Deal?" he stuck his pinky out to my hand, and I giggled before latching my pinky onto his.

"Deal," I gave a quick nod, and sat back against the bench.

"Okay. Story. _My_ story. Where to begin?" he leaned forward, his forearms on his knees, and held his head up with his hands; he actually looked nervous.

"Okay, so I know that this is going to sound insanely lame, but…oh well. My family isn't poor. Not at all, but you probably guessed that from the whole 'I live in Mountain Shadows' deal. Anyways, my Mom wasn't always bad; she used to actually use money to help other people, always working at charities and stuff. I used to enjoy going with her." He smiled, as if remembering those days.

"I think the money got the best of her, though. She doesn't help anyone but herself, nowadays. See, my Dad died when I was younger; everything went to her. My Dad obviously thought that she would take care of me and my sisters." His eyes narrowed, and I couldn't help but reach forward to rub his back reassuringly; I also couldn't help but notice how he relaxed under my touch.

"I just…I hate it, so much. The greed, I mean. Dad was nothing like that; he never let the money get the best of him. I just don't have any interest in being around someone that acts like that, with the constant parties and the need to impress. It's all about image for her, and it makes me sick."

"You don't want to be at home, even to sleep…" I added in, feeling a little more understanding towards his situation.

"Exactly," he murmured, leaning back with me. He gave me a soft smile, and prodded me playfully, "Okay, Meredith. Now it's your turn."

"Okay…" I pulled my bottom lip into my mouth, nervous about telling someone of my troubles at home. The only person who really knew what happened at home was my best friend, Cristina. Was I really ready to let someone else in on the secret?

I was startled when I felt his thumb and index finger pulling my lip from between my teeth.

"It's okay, Meredith, you don't have to tell me."

"No…I want to." I took a deep breath before beginning, "My Mom's a surgeon." I ignored his shocked expression and continued. "She the head of general surgery over at Seattle Grace. But, being in that position, she's never home. I mean, don't get me wrong, she's not a horrible Mom-not a great one either, though. But my Dad, he's the real problem. He's been an alcoholic since I was born, before then, even. He was too drunk to hear me say my first words, and he showed up drunk to my eighth grade graduation." I dared to take a glance at him, and I saw that he actually looked pretty pissed.

"That's not right at all. Someone oughtta kick his ass."

"Bluntness, I like that in a stranger."

"Well you'll have to get to know me to love me," he grinned again. "So that's why you leave? To get away from your Dad?"

"Well…not so much him as getting away from the screaming. Always screaming." I shook my head and let it drop back against the bench. I smiled when I felt his arm wrap around me again.

_Who knew so much comfort could come from a stranger's touch?_

I don't know when I fell asleep, but I woke up when the harsh sunlight hit me. I opened my eyes, squinting with the effort, and noticed that Derek's arm was still around me, and my head was tucked gently into the crook of his neck. He still snored, obviously a deep sleeper. I pried his arm off of my shoulder, careful not to wake him, and made my way back to my house. I couldn't help but smile, remembering the way he had stuck up for me, though he didn't even know me.

"Meredith! I'm gonna go ahead into the hospital- I'm not really in the mood to deal with your father if he comes back."

"So you leave me to do it…" I mumbled as I clunked down the stairs. "Where's Alex?" I asked as I reached the bottom of the staircase.

"Out." She answered, rolling her eyes. "You know he's never home. I'm surprised you'd even ask at this point."

"Love you too, Mom." I made my way into the kitchen as I heard the front door slam behind her.

Not two seconds later, the doorbell rang. I skid my way into the foyer, spoon of peanut butter in my hand. As I grabbed the doorknob, I cursed not having a peephole. _What if it's Dad? Well, what're the odds of that? He doesn't ring the bell; he tries to kick his way in._ I unlatched the lock, mentally noting to stop talking to myself. I dropped my spoon on the ground in shock and felt my mouth drop open; there, leaning against the pillar holding the roof of my porch up, was Derek Shepherd. I couldn't help but notice the grin plastered on his face.


	3. Chapter 3: A Stranger's Kiss

**Da da dadaaaaaa! Chapter Three arrives! I kinda liek this chapter...but I wanna know what you guys think! So how about a review? That'd mean a lot! And anyone interested in Beta-ing...please let me know! **

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"You could've at least woken me up," he smiled, pulling off his Ray-Bans; I was completely dumbfounded. _How the hell…? _"I'm guessing it didn't take me too long to wake up after you left – my arm was still asleep from your sleeping on it." He shot me another wink before nodding to the inside of the house, "Mind if I come in?"

"I-uh…sure. I guess?" I shook my head and stepped aside, closing my eyes at the electric current that passed through me when he brushed against me. Judging by his smile, he obviously felt it too. When he passed, I noticed a jet black motorcycle sitting in my driveway. _How the hell did I miss hearing that? _

As I locked the door, I heard him digging through the kitchen. Something told me Derek Shepherd would be a part of my life from now on, whether I wanted him to be one or not.

When I walked into the kitchen, I raised my eyebrows at the sight before me. Derek was sitting on my counter, holding the peanut butter jar at a distance as if it was alive. _Well make yourself at home…_

"You eat this crap for breakfast?" he scrunched his nose before sliding it down the counter.

"That or pizza, sometimes I make grilled-cheese, though."

"I'm gonna have to teach you how to eat," he smiled, poking the tip of my nose. "Do you have any granola?"

"Uh…no. You know, Derek, you sure seem sure of yourself." He cocked an eyebrow, obviously confused. I rolled my eyes before answering, "You keep bringing up this friendship that we apparently share?"

"Oh. That. Well c'mon, Mer. Two strangers don't meet in the park, sleep together, (I ignored the way he wagged his eyebrows at that one) and then never speak again!"

"Speaking of which…how the_ hell_ did you know where I lived? Most cultures call that stalking…"

"There's only one head of general surgery at Seattle Grace." He smiled.

"Did you…you…you _Googled_ me?"

"Well technically, I Googled your Mom. She's pretty intense, you know."

"Yeah whatever…I know."

"Oh…you obviously…know that," He gave an apologetic shrug.

"Yeah. It's fine. So tell me, Derek, are you always this forward? Following girls home? Googling their parents?" I smiled, trying to re-lighten the mood; I wasn't sure why, but I had an urge to keep him smiling.

He didn't smile back, though. "That's the thing!" he jumped from the counter, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I've never done anything like this. Never! You've done something to me, Meredith Grey. You've…changed me." He looked like he was seriously about to break down, so I approached him and wrapped my arms around his chest, closing my eyes as his scent surrounded me.

"What have you done to me?" he whispered into my hair as his arms snaked around my waist.

"I could ask you the same thing…" I answered, even though I knew the question was rhetorical. I felt the constant electrical charges shooting through me with each circle his hands made on my back.

"C'mon, do you wanna go sit down, talk some more?" I asked, pulling him with me as I headed for the couch in the living room. A slight breeze rolled through the open windows, allowing spring-fresh air to fill the room.

He plopped down on the other side of the couch, facing me. "Do you go to O Dea?" he suddenly asked.

"What?"

"Do you go to O Dea? High school?"

"Oh! Yeah, sophomore. You?"

"Junior," he let that grin shine, "Looks like we're school buddies. I wonder why I haven't ever seen you around…"

"Well it is a pretty huge school."

"Yeah…I guess so."

We talked for hours, about school, people we apparently both knew, and anything else that came to mind. We ate together, peanut butter sandwiches, and went straight back to talking. I was surprised at how easy conversation went with him; there were no awkward silences. When the sun began to set, I glanced at the cable box's clock and gasped.

"God, Derek! We've been sitting here _all _day! I was supposed to clean, and wash the dishes, I have no idea when my Mom's gonna be home! You've gotta go!"

"Shhh, Mer." He stood up and placed his hands gently on my shoulders. "Calm down, I'll help you."

I gave a quick nod and set about picking up the living room while Derek scrubbed at the dishes like a mad-man. We finished within an hour and we agreed to go our separate ways…well…me to go to my room and him to go home.

I stood at the door, hand on the frame. He stood within a few inches of me, giving me his megawatt smile.

"Well I guess I'll see you at school? After Spring Break ends?"

"Yeah I guess so…" I added, biting my lip and looking to the ground. Anyone driving by would have thought we were a couple, each unwilling to say the last good bye.

Suddenly, he brought his fingers under my chin, pulling my face up so my eyes would meet his.

"I'll see you soon, Meredith." He breathed, so close I could feel his breath on my lips. As if choreographed, he leaned in, agonizingly slow, and pressed his lips to mine. My hands found their way into his thick hair, and he pressed both of his hands to either side of my face; our lips moved in sync. No one led, no one had to. We pulled back for air, and pressed our forehead together. He panted heavily, groaning slightly when I brought my tongue across my lower lip. He pulled back, and brought the back of his fingers to my cheek.

"Good bye, Meredith." He smiled and leaned in again, this time choosing to kiss the spot behind my ear instead. I watched as he slid a leg over his bike seat, pulling on his helmet. He gave a small salute, which I returned, before kicking back the kickstand, and revving the bike. I watched him go up the hill and turn the corner before he finally disappeared from view.

I shut the door and squealed to myself. He kissed me! Sure…I'd only known him for about a day…but our connection was _literally_ freaking palpable. It was amazing, the way the touch of his lips had forever ruined me for other men.

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Late that night, I made my way to the playground. Regardless of if Derek was there, I needed to get away. Dad had shown up at the door, and the police had been called. Always the same. He was so drunk this time, that it only took three officers to get him down and keep him that way. I slipped out through the backdoor, grateful that Alex still wasn't home. If he had been, he would have been taken in and booked with Dad, no doubt.

I wiped away my drying tears with the sleeve of my shirt as I stepped onto the gravel of the playground.

"Hey, stranger. Long time no see."

_There's my guy. Right on time. _


	4. Chapter 4: A Stranger's Secret

**A/N: Yay! Chapter three! There's some DPOV in this chapter! Lots of surprises ahead for Meredith. Hope you like it! Pleaseeeee review!**

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"_Hey, stranger. Long time no see."_

"Hey…" he said, wrapping his arms around me, "what's wrong?'

I gave a soft sob, and clenched his shirt in my fists.

"Dad…came home and he was so freaking pissed…"

"Shhh…" he soothed, pressing gentle kisses to my head. "It'll be okay – just stay here with me."

"Great another night in the park…"I sniffed, giggling when I noticed his expression.

"You mean you don't want to spend time with me?"

"Oh please. I've spent the majority of the last twenty-four hours with you…and I've only known you for twenty-four hours…"

He didn't respond, and I looked up to see a hurt expression on his face.

"I don't want to focus on the time, Meredith. I feel like I've known you my whole life, I feel like we've been best friends forever."

"Oh," I responded, unwilling to admit that I felt the same way.

"Don't act like you don't feel it too."

"Well yeah…I guess," I admitted, stumped that he really did seem like he knew me.

"C'mon," he pulled me up onto the playground equipment and crawled into the too-small tunnel with me. Both our knees were pressed uncomfortably against the wall of the tube, our necks craned over as well. Seeing this, he chuckled and pulled me beside him to lie down. I was almost nose-to-nose to with him, but felt no discomfort. I closed my eyes at the sensation his fingers caused as they trailed lightly up and down my arm.

"So," he started, grinning at the way I relaxed under his touch, "do you always kiss on the first date?"

"Oh that was _not_ a date!" I playfully hit him in the arm in an attempt to distract him from the blush spreading across my cheeks. I obviously failed, because he laughed, a little loudly, and touched his fingertips to my hot cheek.

"It was close enough-"

"And that kiss was…I don't know what that was, but it shouldn't have happened because-"I was cut off when his lips crashed down on mine with unbelievable force. His tongue swept across my bottom lip and slipped in my mouth when I parted my lips to moan. He swallowed it with a moan of his own as our tongues fought for dominance. His hand was deep in my hair, and my arms were wrapped around his neck, effectively trapping his lips against my own.

We pulled apart for some much-needed oxygen, and he pressed a few more kisses to my lips before speaking again, "How was that?"

"What was that _fo_r?"

"Well…it seemed like you couldn't remember what exactly our last kiss was like, so I decided to refresh your memory." He winked and pressed his lips to mine again.

I couldn't help but giggle and run my fingertips through his hair.

"I love your hair…" I muttered, pressing my forehead to his.

"I know you do."

"Arrogance does_ not_ make you hotter."

"Sure it does," he laughed. "And you? You liking the arrogance? It makes _you_ hotter."

I laughed and smacked his arm before snuggling in close to him. He brought his chin up to rest it on my head and wrapped his arms around me.

"Good night, Derek."

"Good night, Meredith. Sleep well."

"Well maybe if you didn't snore…"

"What? I do not snore!" I shouted, whipping around to glare at Derek. We had woken up from an almost sleepless night, and were taking turns placing the blame.

"You so do."

"Oh whatever! I don't snore, but I'm done arguing. Maybe if you hadn't pulled me into that ridiculous _tunnel _to _sleep_…we could have actually slept!"

He cut me off with a quick kiss and smiled.

"Fine, you don't snore."

"Thank you."

We began to walk towards the entrance to the park laughing and talking. When it came time to go our separate ways, he hugged me. I watched shyly as he climbed onto the seat of his motorcycle and pulled the helmet on.

"Get on."

"What? No…I don't do death machines."

"Meredith. Get on the bike; it'll be a thirty second ride, tops. I'm not leaving you here to walk all the way home alone.

He was right; thirty seconds later I pulled the helmet off and gave it back to him. My hands were shaking with the adrenaline that apparently came with riding on a death machine.

"Oh, Mer?"

"Yeah?"

"I lied. You do snore. Loud."

"Shut up!"

"Get some sleep, Mer. Spring Break is over tomorrow!" he laughed before revving the engine and pulling out of my driveway.

"Arrogant asshole," I said to myself, watching him drive away with a smile on my face.

I let myself into the house and did exactly what Derek had suggested; I got myself some sleep.

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I started seeing Derek everywhere at school after Spring break ended; it was like, now that I knew he existed, he was everywhere. I passed him in the hallway on the way to chemistry, and he winked. I passed him on my way to geometry and he wagged his eyebrows.

Finally, after the final bell rang, he approached me. I rounded the corner to my locker and saw him leaning against the lock next to mine.

"How'd you know which locker was mine?" I asked shyly.

"Saw you getting some books out of it before fourth period," he smirked and looked me up and down. "You look good today."

"Thanks," I mumbled before opening my locker. I wasn't so used to the compliments.

Right as I shut my locker and he wrapped his arms around me, we heard another voice.

"Derek!" we both turned around and saw a red headed girl walking down the hallway; she was tall and slim and had a beautiful, straight smile.

I felt Derek drop his arms from their resting place around my waist, and looked up at him to see an angry spark in his eye. He looked down and met my eyes before whispering, "I'm sorry."

"Derek," the girl smiled; I thought I'd seen her around school. _Amanda? Ashley?_

"Addison," Derek said stiffly as he glared at her. Addison! Addison Montgomery.

She suddenly turned to me with a skeptical look, "And you are?"

"Meredith Grey," I muttered. I had a bad feeling about this.

"Oh!" She looked almost happy and looked at Derek. He shook his head softly, closing his eyes and pulling his bottom lip into his mouth. "So _you_ must have been the girl screwing my boyfriend while I was gone."

_Boyfriend?_ "Boyfriend?" I looked to Derek for confirmation; he didn't deny anything.

"Mer, can I explain?" he pled, putting one hand against my cheek.

"No you can't explain, Derek. She's said plenty anyways." I shook his hand off, disgusted, and stormed down the hallway. I whipped around angrily when I felt his hand wrap around my arm.

"Meredith! I was gonna tell you! So many times! But tonight…I was definitely gonna tell you tonight! But we…we broke up!"

"When?"

"What?"

"When did you break up with her?"

"Well I – Tod – I was gonna break it off today, when she got back from Chicago!"

I wrinkled my nose in disgust and slapped him. "Not good enough, you cheating asshole." He pressed his hand against the angry red mark on his cheek but grabbed my arm again, nonetheless.

"She cheated on me! With Mark! He was my best friend and they fu…She cheated on me!"

"Great…so you were just gonna use me to get back at her?" I turned to walk away again.

"Oh God!" he smacked his own hand against his forehead. "No! That's not…I didn't mean to! No! That wasn't it at-"

"Just shut up, Derek. Go comfort your girlfriend. I casually flipped him off over my shoulder before turning the corner. That was as far as I made it before the tears welled over. I heard the sound of his fist connecting with a locker and his angry, "God damn it!" He was sure lucky that school was out and the teachers had a staff meeting; if they had heard that screaming of his, he would have been in deep trouble. I stopped to lean against a wall, but couldn't help but take one last look around the corner. What I saw made me even angrier, if possible; Derek had his forehead pressed against my locker, the bridge of his nose pinched between his thumb and index. Behind him, Addison stood smiling sympathetically at me while she rubbed soothing circles on Derek's back. _Cheating asshole._

D POV

The cool metal of the locker felt amazing against the pounding of my head, Addison's hand, however, only made my back tense up.

"Keep your hands _off_ of me, Addison!" I growled, turning to face her. She raised her hands up in surrender and glanced up and down the hallways. "Derek! Try to be mature, someone might hear you!"

"Oh God _forbid_ someone think the worlds perfect freaking couple was fighting!"

"Stop shouting," She hissed.

"No!" I yelled even louder to spite her and started down the hallway towards the side door.

"You did that on purpose!" I rambled as I walked, "You knew we were as good as over!" I looked down the hallway Meredith went down and silently begged her to come back.

"Derek! I knew it was a mistake with Ma-"

"Don't even say his name!" I rounded on her. "We were dating and you two went off and…" I trailed off, unable to admit what Addison had done to me.

"You were ignoring me."

"_What_?" I asked, disbelieving. Did she really want to turn this on me?

"You were ignoring me, and Mark paid attention to me! We've been dating for four years, Derek, and you're willing to let one mistake ruin – how old is that girl anyways?"

I raised my eyebrow at the sudden subject change, but answered nonetheless, "Sixteen? I think…" I tried to think back to a time over the last few days that we had discussed ages, but came up blank. "Well I know she's a sophomore."

"Uh huh." She smirked. "I see. How long have you known her?"

"About a week. But why the Hell should I be answering your questions?"

"Oh come on, hun! You're gonna let someone who you've known for a week ruin a _four year relationship_?" She wrapped her arms around my neck and finished her sentence with a quick kiss.

"Four years…" I breathed.

"Yeah, why would you wanna screw that up?"

"Why would I?" I looked to her for confirmation.

"Yeah," she smiled, stroking my cheek with her manicured nail.

"Well I'm not the one who screwed it up, am I? I threw her arms off and made my way down the hallway towards the main entrance since she blocked the side one.

"You won't do this, Derek Shepherd! You just have to sleep on it, you'll come to your senses!" she stopped talking when I casually flipped her off over my shoulder and I walked out of the building.

Now, where would Meredith be?

I made my way to the park, knowing I had a whole hell of a lot of explaining to do.


	5. Chapter 5: A Stranger's Jealousy

**A/N: Okay, I know I fail. :[ But i had a major family emergency, so i didn't get to typwe all of chapter five...but it was super freaking long, like more then nessecary, so I've split it into two halves. I swear, cross my heart and hope to die, that the next part will be up TODAY!**

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D POV

I brought my hands up and ran them through my hair, a nervous habit I'd developed when I was young, when I didn't see Meredith at the playground.

_You moron, why would she come here? She knows you'd show up._

I gave the park one final glance before I noticed a pair of chaco-feet hanging out the side of the tunnel; Meredith was the only person I knew who wore the ridiculous sandals.

_Oh, Meredith. _

I climbed up the rock wall, meant for people half my size, and knelt on the plat form that connected to the bridge. I chuckle when I saw Meredith, half asleep. _Of all the things to do…you sleep._

I sat back on the platform and nudged her foot with my own. When she stirred, I spoke. "It's flipped, isn't it? In kindergarten you despise the naps – in high school you beg for them."

Her eyes were still glazed over with sleep, but she managed to shoot me a hate-filled glare. "Go. Away." She said it with almost no emotion, but her eyes gave away the pain she felt.

"Not until you hear me out." I gripped her ankle, knowing she would flee at any second.

"I don't want to hear anything!" She tried her best to pull out of my grip, but I simply pulled her closer to me.

"Why'd you come here if you didn't want me to find you, then?"

"I've come here for years, Derek. Just because you know about it too doesn't mean I'm gonna stop."

"Oh," I sighed. We sat silent for several minutes, my hand still gripping her ankle as if it were my lifeline.

"What am I to you, Derek?" She suddenly asked, snapping me out of my trance. "Just some girl you wanted to screw to get over being screwed?"

"No!" I answered back quickly. "No..no. I hadn't thought of…I never really pictured you…well I mean, I did but…not like..Oh Jesus…" I felt that heat flood my cheeks, and decided it would be best to just shut up.

"Then what am I?" She asked again, quieter.

I took a few moments to think before I responded; I wanted to get my feelings for Meredith captured in just a few, perfect, words.

"Fresh air," I finally decided.

"What do you mean?"

"You were like coming up for fresh air. It's like I was drowning and you saved me. That's all I know."

"It's not enough." She said, shaking her head. When she made a move to leave, I let her – ther was nothing else I could really do. I let my head fall back against the bars on the platform and closed my eyes, allowing her time to leave the park and head up the hill that led to her house. When I assumed she was far enough away, I got up and headed to my bike.

_She's right; it wasn't enough._

* * *

Meredith obviously didn't do well in her classes the next day; she didn't stop to get a book from her locker once - the locker I just so happened to be waiting by all day.

"Damn it all," I muttered as the final bell rang. Heading out the side door towards my assigned parking space, I noticed the red-head perched on my bike. "Ugh…" I groaned, though I forgot completely about Addison when I saw Meredith walking past my bike quickly.

"Derek!" Addison called, trying to sound attractive. Meredith turned around at the mention of my name and rolled her eyes.

"Get off my bike Addison, _now_," I growled, jogging past her towards Meredith. I grabbed her arm and pulled her back to me.

"What?" She hissed.

"We should discuss this!"

"No. Here's a thought: quit following me! I told you it wasn't enough."

"At least let me…give more of an explanation!"

"Explanation? You know when you should've explained? The night we met at the playground, before any of the rest of it. Yeah, that would've been a good time to discuss it!"

"Look, I know how you feel," I finally admitted.

"Do you?" she shouted, "Somehow I doubt that, because if you did, you would shut up and you would turn around and go back inside because you would realize that I am _this_ close to starting your _ridiculous _motorcycle and running you over in the _parking_ lot!"

Before I could even react to her ridiculous rant, (would she really run me over?), she spun around and began to stomp off towards another car. As I saw her approach a red mustang, I arched an eyebrow.

_I didn't know Meredith drove…or had car._

As I slipped on my helmet and snapped the shin strap securely, I watched her lean against the passenger side of the car. She must have felt my confused glare, because she turned to face me and narrowed her eyes before suddenly smiling. I actually got my hopes up and started to smile back before I felt someone shoulder me out of the way.

Finn Dandridge didn't even acknowledge my presence, or the fact that he had basically just shoved me out of his way, as he made his way to his parked car. His mustang…his _red_ mustang. Meredith was waiting for Finn.

I watched, and cringed, as Meredith was swept into his tight embrace. She giggled as he spun her, so he was facing me, and I didn't miss the smug wink he gave me before gesturing to Meredith with his eyes. Finn was a bragger; he would show Meredith off as much as he could. As he put her down and pressed a chaste kiss to her lips, she smiled brightly, and I realized that I had never seen her so bright or carefree. I had always assumed she was like me, silently seething behind a neutral mask; _I guess I was wrong. _

I got on my bike, my jaw clenched, and kicked the kick-stand up with more force than necessary. I watched as Meredith slid into his car and he shut the door for her. _Always the gentleman, Finn. _When I saw him begin to pull out of his space, I gunned my bike forward, cutting him off in the process. I couldn't help but smile to myself and shake my head as I heard his horn blare and his brakes slam.

_Serves you right, bastard. _

MPOV

"God! Learn to freaking drive!" Finn shouted as Derek rocketed past.

"Sorry," he smiled at me, "Shepherd's never known how to drive that damn thing. I'd be shocked if he even passed his driving tests…" he trailed off, muttering that _'Shepherd,_' probably just screwed the license right out of his driving instructor.

"He doesn't seem like the type." I said.

"What?" He asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

"He doesn't seem like the type of guy that would ever do something like that," I didn't know why I was protecting Derek – he certainly didn't freaking deserve it.

"You know, in the past, I wouldn't either, but with all the stuff he's done lately," he whistled and shook his head, as if it would give me some clue to the evil things Derek had been up to.

"Like what?" I couldn't help but ask, even though I did have some idea as to what the gossip mongers might be saying.

"Okay, so yesterday? After school? He got into this huge argument with his girlfriend, Addison Montgomery," her name made me cringe, and so did the way Finn said it, "and apparently she was just calling him out on cheating on her with some sophomore, and he just lost it and called her a bitch!" he looked at me with wide eyes, obviously expecting some kind of response to his earth-shattering news.

"Wow! That's just…_crazy_!" I said, purely for his benefit. It shouldn't surprise me that the rumors about the fight yesterday were getting stretched, to say the least. "Did anyone say who he's been…screwing?" I coughed as I said it, cringing at the use of the actual word.

"Well, Addison only said it was some sophomore that'd probably been through half of the junior class by now. She wouldn't tell me who, but it's obvious she knows; she probably just wants to protect the chick's reputation. She's nice like that." He smiled, and I rolled my eyes. The only reason Addison left my name out was because most of the people at the school knew me, and knew I'd never act like that.

"Are you even listening to me, Meredith?"

"Yeah! Totally; I just missed that last part."

"I _said_, you're a sophomore. Do you have any idea who it might've been?"

"Nope."

"None at _all_?"

"Nope," I popped the 'p,' getting slightly annoyed with Finn's nosy attitude, "I never took you as the type to enjoy idle gossip, Finn."

He laughed and put his hand on my knee, squeezing it gently."I don't normally, by any means, but when Derek Shepherd is involved, I know it's big."

"Why?" I grumbled, "It's not like he's a saint…"

"Oh around here? He might as well be. All the girls throw themselves at him, because of his money, but's he's never had eyes for anyone other than Addison. Well," he chuckled as he caught himself, "not until recently, anyways."

"Are you sure it's just because of his money? I mean…he's not exactly…bad looking."I slapped my hand over my mouth, worried that I had offended Finn. His eyes narrowed, and his jaw tensed up the slightest bit, but other than that he seemed fine. "Well I guess it's that too, but it's so weird, you know? He's totally loaded, but he never shows it – well other than his stupid bike and over-priced sunglasses." At his words, I flashed back to the day Derek had shown up on my front porch wearing a pair of Ray-bans that must have cost a small fortune.

"Well I guess it's a decent motorcycle death machine," Finn rolled his eyes so I added, "but I'm more of a car person, myself. As long as it's fast," I whispered the last part in his ear, punctuating it with a nip to his earlobe. I giggled and dropped back down in my seat when he pressed the accelerator and squeezed my knee, finally cracking a smile. I looked down to his hand, having shifted slightly up my leg, and frowned when I realized his touch didn't come with the same electric shock as Derek's.

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**A/N: Sooo? Please, please review! I know this isn't much for today, but I'm trying. I just need some emotional support :) **


	6. Chapter 6: A Stranger's Old Friend

**A/N: Here it is! The second half! Let me know!**

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M POV

Several hours after Finn dropped me off; I lay in my bed thinking about the recent changes in my life. I thought about Derek and his 'easy sophomore,' and the anger Derek directed at Addison. The thought of his hateful words towards her made me slightly happy, though my anger at him had yet to fade. A small part of me, I had to admit, wanted to open my front door and find Derek standing there in all his glory, as I had the day after I met him. However, the other part of me reasoned that he obviously wasn't the guy I thought I knew; he couldn't be the same guy that held be as I slept when I was upset, or the same dreamy guy that had practically invited himself into my house and my life. The guy I thought I'd met at the park would have told me about his girlfriend before he let me fall for him.

I shifted my thoughts to happier ones, thoughts of Finn. I knew Finn for a while before I knew Derek; he had asked me out on several occasions, and I finally decided to take him up on the offer and see a movie with him. I also knew more about Finn; he liked fast cars, animals, and called guys he didn't like by their last name. He wasn't into dating casually for very long; once he got to know a girl, he wanted to be exclusive. That probably meant that he would ask me where I thought we were going soon; that's the kind of person he was. If I said I didn't know where we were going, he wouldn't have a problem moving onto someone knew – that was the part that made me nervous. Finn had hair lighter than Derek's, and always had a little five o 'clock shadow around his jaw. His blue eyes were totally entrancing, and he had perfect, white teeth. His muscles were more big and pronounced, compared to Derek's lean build, and he had an unlimited supply of fan girls. I started to feel bad about myself when I thought about the number of girls that were interested in Finn, and how he seemed to flirt with just about all of them.

"Mer?" I looked up, snapped out of my inner ramblings, to see Alex standing in my doorway.

"Hey! You're home!" I smiled, always happy to see my brother.

"Yup," I noticed he didn't exactly look happy. "Did Dad come home while I was gone?" _Uh oh._

"Uhh, yeah. But Mom wasn't home, so I just called the police and they took him in for a few nights."

"Mom wasn't here?"

"Well, no. But don't worry; I was fine."

"Did you _call_ her?" he sat at my desk chair, putting his legs on either side of the chair back, and spun it to face me.

"Yeah…"

"And?"

"She said she was super busy and hung up before I could really tell her anything, so I called the cops myself. I'm a big girl now, Alex; I know how to handle myself."

"Well why don't you call _me_ next time? Okay?"

"Definitely." I smiled and he nodded his head.

"Did you stay here or go to Cristina's?" Cristina was my best friend that attended the local private school. She knew about my family's situation, and her door was always open for Alex and I.

"I went to another friend's house."

"Really?" he looked confused. "Who?"

"His name's Derek."

"You went to a guy's house, Mer?" Alex stood from my chair quickly. "Derek who?"

"Shepherd?" I bit my bottom lip; it was useless for me to lie to Alex, he always knew.

"You know Derek Shepherd? More importantly…you spent the night with Derek Shepherd?" He asked, incredulous. Alex was a senior at O Dea, so it shouldn't have surprised me that he knew Derek.

"Why the hell did everyone know him except for me?"

"How did you not know him? His Dad used to own a ton of fast food places in this area; they're absolutely rich! Is his house huge?"

"Well…I don't exactly know; we slept in the park."

"So you slept in a _park_…with Derek Shepherd…?"

"Oh God…I'm not making this any better…" I muttered, mostly to myself.

"No…no you aren't," he grumbled.

"Nothing happened," I clarified.

"Well I wouldn't think so; no offense Mer, you're pretty and all…but his girlfriend is Addison Montgomery…"

"Yeah yeah, I know. Were you at school yesterday? Or today?"

"Nah, me and Izzie were hanging out," he answered. So he hadn't heard about their break-up…or what I supposed was a break up.

"Did you know she cheated on him with his best friend?"

"Mark?"

"Yeah, it's horrible."

"Wow…that seems so unlike her…sounds like Mark, though. But you know they've been dating for forever; it'd take something really huge to make him leave her."

"Even bigger then her cheating?"

"Probably; Shepherd's a forgiving kind of guy. Plus…Addison's hot." He chuckled before adding, "Don't tell Iz I said that."

"Cross my heart," I sighed, flopping back on my bed, my head hanging off the side.

"Well, Izzie's waiting downstairs, so I'll talk to you later. Do you need a ride to school tomorrow?"

"No, I'm good. Tell Izzie I said hey."

"Will do!" he shouted, half way down the stairs already. Izzie and Alex had been dating since the seventh grade and seemed perfect together. That night I went to bed with dreams of Derek and I having the relationship that Alex shared with Izzie. I wanted to be perfect…and I wanted to be perfect with Derek.

I smiled as I opened my locker the next day. Finn had been waiting for me when I walked out the door, and had kissed me chastely when we arrived at school. _Today's gonna be a great day._

I was suddenly aware of someone leaning against the locker down from mine, watching me. I looked up out of the corner of my eyes before turning to face him.

He had light brown hair and pale eyes that were hard to distinguish…_Are they blue or grey?_ He had a smooth smirk, much like Derek's.

"Can I help you?" I asked, smiling and biting my lip.

"You can! By letting me take you to a dinner and movie."

"Blunt and straight to the point…I like that in a stranger." I closed my locker and leaned in against it, matching his posture.

"Subtlety was never one of my strong points." He smiled, showing his teeth. "So do you want to go out tonight?"

"Uhh…" I trailed off, uncomfortable.

"What? You don't date older guys?"

"Well no…it's just that…I'm seeing someone right now."

"Ah, I see." He frowned, "What's your name?"

"Meredith," I smiled again, "And you are…?"

Before he could answer, he was hit in the face and thrown to the ground by the impact.

I gasped and turned to see Derek holding his fist gingerly and wincing. "Derek! Are you crazy?"

"That was Mark." He said, glaring at Mark, whose cheek was split open and bleeding.

"Mr. Shepherd!" Mr. Storey shouted, looking from Mark to Derek and back again. "My office! Now! Young lady," he looked to me, "would you mind escorting Mr. Sloan to the clinic?" he didn't wait for me to answer, stomping off to his office with a sheepish Derek in tow.

A few minutes later, I was in the clinic, watching as the nurse placed several band-aids over Mark's cut. I blushed when I noticed him appraising me.

"Derek and I always did have the same taste in girls," he said, his eyes gliding from my legs up to my eyes.

"Excuse me?" I asked, blushing when the nurse smiled.

"You're Derek's sophomore, aren't you?"

"You're Addison's mistress, right?"

"Touche! We have a lot in common," he smiled.

He asked the nurse if he was free to go, and, when she nodded her consent, pulled me out the door.

"You know, it's funny. Derek walks in on me and his girlfriend of _four _years, I mean actually in the throes, and he just turns around and walks away. But he sees me so much as _talking_ to you and I'm on the ground bleeding. Interesting, don't you think?"

"The only thing I'm _thinking_, is that I should get to class." I backed away with my hands behind my back, smirking at him.

"I _think_ you should let me know about that movie," he winked.

"I'm still seeing someone!" I laughed over my shoulder.

"He won't stand a chance next to me!"

"Bye, Mark." I laughed.

"Bye Meredith."


	7. Chapter 7: A Stranger's Anger

**A/N: Here ya go! Hope you like it!**

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"So have you two done the deed yet?" Preston Burke asked. I looked up quickly to see that he was directing the question to Finn. My eyes narrowed and I'm almost sure he noticed it. His eyebrows came together on his forehead, but I looked down to my lunch, escaping his glance. I leaned back in my seat, shredding bits of the pita bread I had used for a sandwich, anxious to what Finn's response would be.

"Not yet, man, but we're so damn close I can taste it," Finn responded, a smug grin over-taking his lips.

"Are you sure?" George O'Malley asked, his thumbnail trapped between his teeth.

"Of course I'm sure! I know when a girl wants me, George, but I understand if you don't." he finished the sentence with a cocky smile aimed towards George.

George raised his hands in surrender before continuing, "No need to get defensive, Finn. I was simply saying that she's Meredith _Grey_; she's about as innocent as they come." I snorted and everyone looked at me as I tried to cover it up with a series of coughs and sniffs. They obviously didn't know Meredith and the kind of life she came from; she had seen far too many things to be deemed innocent.

"Anyways," George said, dragging out the letters, "What makes you think Meredith would do anything with you? What makes you different?"

"The same things that make me different for every girl I date; I have a way with words, a gift for persuasion. It comes in handy. So I'll just charm Meredith off her ass, then move on to the next one." Everyone, except for me, laughed and a few guys smacked him on the back. I rolled my eyes, and Finn glared at me.

"What's your problem, Shep? Pissed you didn't snag Grey before I did?"

"How do you know I didn't?" I got up from the table, my uneaten lunch in hand and ignoring the incredulous looks everyone at the table shot at me. I made my way to the trash can at the front of the cafeteria, trying not to hyperventilate. Sure, the lie I had told Finn wasn't exactly a lie…I had technically befriended Meredith before he did. But…when Meredith found out about my slip…our friendship would have no hope of repairing, not to mention the humiliation I'd suffer. But Meredith's feelings were more important than anything to me. As I tossed my food into the trash, Finn approached me and spun me around.

"You stupid little…" he didn't finish, choosing to connect his fist to my nose instead. Judging by the disgustingly loud crunch, he had succeeded in breaking it. Fuming, I launched myself at him, connecting my fist to his face several times before we even hit the ground. He tried in vain to push me off of him, but I only hit him again, harder, before standing up and panting over him.

"Mr. Shepherd! Are you on a roll today?" Mr. Storey asked.

"Oh God." I groaned, turning to face him. He cringed at the site of my face and nose, actually stepping back.

"You need to get to the hospital, and I'm guessing Mr. Dandridge here, will too." I turned to see that Finn was slowly sitting up from the floor, with help from Burke. When Burke saw my angry glare, he dropped Finn and backed away. _Damn right you need to back away. _

As I made my way to the front hallway of the school, my head tilted at an awkward angle to cease the blood flow, I ran into Meredith.

"Derek!" she gasped, her hand reaching up to gingerly touch my face. I felt myself relax into her touch, almost automatically. "Are you okay?"

"I'm better off than Finn, I think…" I closed my eyes when she whipped her hand away from my face. _Great job, Shepherd._

"Oh Derek," she groaned, "Please tell me you didn't…"

"I did," I said it so quietly, I was almost sure she would miss it. She didn't though, and she dashed into the cafeteria. I solemnly made my way to the front of the school, where one of my friends was waiting to take me to the hospital.

A few hours later, I left the hospital with two black eyes and an aching nose. I had heard about Finn's condition, and he wasn't as bad off as me. That being the case, he still looked worse, and the thought made me smile smugly.

I would have a week of detention for fighting, whereas Finn would have two for instigating the fight. If I added that to the week I had already obtained for socking Mark, and Finn and I were equal.

As I stepped into the outdoor lobby of the hospital, I saw the back of the head of a very familiar person. I sat next to her and stretched out, my arm draped over the bench behind her.

"How is he," I asked, though I already knew. She didn't look up from where her head rested face down on her arms.

"He's fine, I guess; two black eyes, a busted lip, and a cracked knuckle – not that you'd even care."

"Sure I care, I'm worse off anyways." She looked up at my confession, and her eyes widened at the sight of my bruised face.

"He got you good."

"I got him better."

"Bull. He broke your nose."

"I broke his knuckle – that's more painful."

"Your _nose_ cracked his knuckle…you know? When he broke it?"

"Touché. So are you proud of him?"

"I couldn't care less, actually."

"What? But I thought you two…" I trailed off, hoping she wouldn't make me add more.

"He told me he didn't want to see me again. You just missed him, actually, Burke picked him up."

"So…he left without you?"

"Well…yeah. He told me to get my own ride."

"I'll kick his ass!"

"You already did," she smiled, bringing her knees up on the bench and wrapping her arms around them.

"Good point," I shrugged, leaning back and relaxing again.

"Yeah, anyways. I'm hoping Alex can give me a ride before he leaves school for work."

"Have you called him yet?" I asked.

"No."

"Well…I can drive you," I offered.

"Just because we're having a conversation that doesn't involve shouting, doesn't mean we're friends again." Some of the hope I had fell away at her words, but I refused to look fazed.

"I can still give you a ride…" I admitted, a little quieter.

"Fine, I guess."

"So…why did Finn…" I bit my lip.

She sighed, "He said I didn't want your castoff; I don't even want to ask where the hell he got that." She looked to me out of the corner of her eye but I just ran my hand through my hair nervously. "I should've known," she sighed, apparently reading my face. "Is that what you two were fighting about?"

"Uhh yeah."

She nodded her head, bringing her forehead to rest against her knees. "He thinks we had sex," she stated it, rather than asked it.

I groaned and pinched the bridge of my nose, "Yes."

"And by tomorrow…everyone in Seattle will think we did too." She concluded.

"I'm sorry, Meredith. This is all my fault."

"Yeah…it probably is," Meredith said bluntly. "Why didn't you just deny it? Or did he hit you before you could?" I had to be truthful with her…no more lies.

"Well…it's a bit of a story…"

"I have a bit of time," she smiled, though it never really reached her eyes.

I couldn't help but smile back. "Well…at lunch…he was saying some things about you." I looked over at her, and she looked slightly shocked. "He kept saying that you were…you were gonna be…_doing_ things with him soon. He kept bragging, and saying that you wanted him so bad and he said…that he was gonna dump you afterwards…" she hadn't moved, but her eyes were closed now.

"I was mad, and he knew it. So he asked if I was mad that he had beat me…to you, I mean. So I told him he_ didn't_ beat me to you."I looked over and was surprised to see a small smile ghosting her lips.

"Why is it that all guys are cave men?" she laughed quietly.

"I'm only possessive when it comes to you." I admitted.

"Derek…" she warned.

"I'm serious." We sat in comfortable silence for a while, until Owen Hunt arrived with my bike in the back of his truck.

"Great," she said, glaring, "another ride on the death machine." I couldn't help but laugh.

"You didn't die the first time, did you?"

"This ride will be longer," she actually looked disgruntled, and I chuckled and poked her nose.

"You'll just have to hang on tight." I winked and made my way to the truck, helping Owen lower it to the ground.

A while later, I was sitting at the island in my kitchen, mulling over a turkey wrap while our housekeeper, Elizabeth, clucked her tongue in disapproval.

"That poor family," she shook her head, setting the phone down on the countertop.

"What?" I asked.

"Oh, Thatcher Grey passed away this afternoon."

"Grey?" I asked, my turkey wrap long forgotten.

"Yes. Left behind a wife and two children; they go to school with you."

"Who are they?" I stood up.

"Alex…and uhh…You know…I'm not positive."

"It is Meredith?" I grabbed my jacket from the seat next to me.

"Yes! That's it! Do you know her?" she looked up, but I never answered. I was out the door before she could blink.

_Oh God, Mer._

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**A/N: Okay, soo? Please review! It inspires me to finish faster when I know you guys are excited for the next chapter! Please :D Oh! And...a review gets you a teaser!**


	8. Chapter 8: A Stranger's Home

**A/N: Here's the next chapter! I hope you like it...I'm not sure. Let me know if you liked it, and you'll get a teaser with your review reply :D Sound good? I hope!**

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M POV

I lay on my back on the smooth blacktop of the playground, watching the stars. So many things had happened, all since this afternoon. First, seeing Derek bloody and dizzy out in the hallway, before seeing Finn bruised and beaten on the cafeteria floor. Next, seeing Finn at the hospital, and him dumping me, right before Derek showed up and drove me home. Finally…learning my Dad had died. It was such a shock – realizing someone I had always been around no longer existed – that I just stood there, staring at my Mom. I almost expected my Mom to hug me, console me in anyway, really, but she simply looked at her watch and told me she was heading to work. I didn't know where Alex was, nor did I really care.

And here I was, wondering what the afterlife was – if there was one to begin with.

_Where are you Dad? Have you crossed the river Styx yet? Are you sleeping on a cloud yet? Did you make it through the pearly gates? Were you reincarnated into some kind of weird plant? Did anything even happen to you? Or…are you a star? _I liked that idea; the thought of him brightening the night sky.

I was aware of another presence, his head laying next to my own, even though his body laying in the opposite direction of my own.

"You okay?" Derek asked, his eyes trained on the stars.

"Yeah," I sighed. "Mom's a realist – always has been. She told us, when we were little, that he would die. She also told us that, when he did, we weren't allowed to cry, 'not for scum like him.'"

"That's horrible!" he whispered it, rolling on his side to face me.

"That's just my Mom."

"But you're…you're really okay?"

"What did you do…when your Dad died?"

He sighed and sat up. "I threw stuff – a lot – I stomped. I didn't eat for days…just what my Mom made me eat. I tried to blame her…I told her I hated her and it was all her fault." He closed his eyes when his voice cracked, and he lay back down.

"You must think I'm horrible…not feeling anything. No anger…sadness. Nothing," I whispered. He sat up again and pulled me to him, planting me on his lap. I didn't move, too glad to have another human being in close proximity.

"I think you're amazing, nothing less," he whispered back, running his fingers through my hair.

"I care that he's gone, Der, really I do. But…It's just that I'm not surprised. He's been in and out of the hospital for overdoses since I was a toddler. I guess…this time…they didn't get him in time..." my voice shook and several tears fell before Derek wiped them away with his thumb.

"Don't explain anything to me, Mer. You don't have too. You don't deserve this kind of pain."

"You didn't either, you know." I stoked his knuckles with my thumb as we waited in silence.

He suddenly looked up to the clouds and announced, "I shouldn't stay here tonight; it's going to rain."

"Oh! Yeah definitely not." I said, getting up quickly and almost losing my balance. He jumped up and caught me, pulling my back against his chest. "Oh no you don't. Come home with me, Meredith; give me another chance. Don't leave me again, I can't take it." He whispered his last words, pressing his nose to my hair and inhaling. When he moved his nose down and nuzzled my nose, I knew I wouldn't have a choice. Not with him being all…Mr. McDreamy.

"Okay."

* * *

Intimidating. How could a _house_ be _intimidating_? Well…I still don't know, but this house was definitely intimidating. It stood at least three stories, with another one underground, according to Derek.

"C'mon," he smiled, pulling me into the house with his fingers laced through mine. "Ma! I'm home!" he called, pulling off his shoes in the foyer and motioning for me to do the same.

"Derek, you're home! Great!" A woman, who I assumed to be Ms. Shepherd, came around the corner, looking frazzled. "Listen, I'm having guests over, so you and your…," she looked at me, her nose wrinkled as she took in my appearance, "friend need to stay quiet and keep away from the first floor."

"Meredith, Ma. Her _name_ is _Meredith_."

"Yes, yes. Sure! Just keep upstairs, in your room preferably."

"Fine. I'll get some snacks and drinks first, and then we'll stay in my room." Ms. Shepherd only huffed and left the foyer area.

"She's totally fine with you having a girl in your room all night?" I whispered, looking around to make sure she hadn't heard me.

"She doesn't care as long as I don't embarrass her."

"Oh."

We went into the kitchen, and I waited at the counter while he scurried around. He popped popcorn and poured it into a bowl along with some granola in a bag and several bottles of water.

"Forgoing the health food for some popcorn tonight?" I asked, smiling.

"It's unbuttered and unsalted." He glared for a few seconds before chuckling. "Don't you judge me, Meredith Grey."

I giggled and followed him out of the kitchen and to the stairs. We climbed to the top flight and went down a long hallway to reach his room. I looked around as he situated our food on his desk.

He had a black bed that was flat on the floor and covered with a striped comforter. The black walls had chalk drawings covering them. He had stacks of books in one corner, next to a glass desk topped with a Mac desktop. I wiggled my toes in the soft white carpet covering some of his dark hardwood floors before turning to face him.

"The chalk, I like it. I've never seen someone do that."

"Uhh yeah. I do my homework on my walls sometimes; it's great."

"And it comes off?"

"Yeah! It isn't actually paint; it's a chalkboard." He smiled and grabbed a piece of chalk, drawing a quick smiley face on his wall to demonstrate.

"Very cool." I smiled and moved to sit on his bed. "Oh? Is this okay?" I motioned towards his bed, my eyebrows drawn together.

"Absolutely! You'll be uhh…sleeping there tonight, anyways. I mean…if you don't feel – " he blushed and bit his lip.

"I'd love to," I smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "So you got to actually choose what your bedroom looked like?"

"Yeah…didn't you?"

"No…" I grumbled, feeling as if I had been left out on something big.

"Oh," he said awkwardly, leaning from one foot to the other."

"It's fine." I said, relaxing back onto his bed.

"Well. I suppose we can get ready for bed…then watch some movies or something." I looked around his room for a television, but didn't find one. He laughed and hit a button on a remote, causing a flat screen to swing out to where I could see it from the bed.

"Your TV…it hangs from the wall?"

"Yeah. I think its sorta lame – too showy - but my Mom said it was 'classy.' Whatever the hell that means." He headed over towards his black dresser and opened a few drawers. He pulled out a pair of blue plaid boxers, with a black t-shirt, and a pair of blue sleep pants. He brought the clothes over to the bed and dropped the boxers and t-shirt in my lap.

"No shirt for you…?" I asked, my eyes flashing down to his chest.

"No," he winked, "I like to be as cool as possible while I sleep."

I nodded and blushed when he brought his finger to my chin and brought my eyes back up to his.

He wagged his eyebrows and added, "But if you're gonna be ogling me all night…making me uncomfortable like that…I may put one on."

"Oh! Don't feel obliged to!" I smacked my hand to my mouth, twelve shades of red. "I think I'm gonna go change, now!" I ran into the bathroom attached to his bedroom and slammed the door shut.

After changing into the clothes Derek gave me, choosing to keep my bra and panties on, I looked in the mirror. _Derek…with no shirt. Don't stare _all _night, Meredith. Don't give him the satisfaction._ I fixed my hair and stepped out of the bathroom. I squealed and turned around quickly, [inching the bridge of my nose between my fingers. Derek, however, didn't even react, simply laughing before pulling on his boxers and sleep pants.

"Sorry about that," he laughed, "I thought you'd make some noise before you came out."

"Yeah! Yeah…I'm sorry…soooo so sorry."

"Meredith. It's fine."

"Maybe for you!" I turned around, my hands covering my eyes. "For me? Not so okay!" He was quiet for a while, and I slowly parted my fingers and peaked at him between them. He smiled and I brought my hands down, still blushing.

"Did you at least like what you saw?" I groaned and he laughed again, loudly. "I'm just kidding, Meredith." He wrapped his arms around my waist and picked me up, swinging me onto his bed and making me giggle. I suddenly felt bad…well horrible, really, for laughing when my Dad had just...died. I got quiet and looked up at the ceiling.

"Meredith?" Derek asked quietly, touching my arm.

"It's not right, Derek…for me to have so much fun when my Dad is gone."

"It isn't your fault, Meredith. Your Mom…" he climbed on the bed and wrapped me in his arms.

"I know, I know. But if I was more…normal…I would still feel bad. Cry, even."

"You're so much better than _normal, _Meredith."

"Why are you so nice to me, Derek? After I screamed at you?"

"Because I deserved it, I deserve to still be getting yelled at, as a matter of fact."

I smiled, "Well…if you're into that – "

"No! This is fine, this is great!" he snuggled against me, pulling me flush against him.

"Okay," I smiled and closed my eyes, breathing his woodsy scent in.

We spent the rest of the night laughing, throwing popcorn at each other and watching movies. We finally came to a truce when his open bottle of water was positioned over my head.

"Okay! Okay! I give!" I laughed, pushing his arm away gently.

He laughed with me and put the bottle on his bed-side table, composed of two bike wheels with a glass top, before wrapping his arms around me and pulling us under the blankets. He hit a button on his giant remote that shut the lights off, but left the TV on.

He pressed a gentle kiss to my head before closing his eyes and gently stroking my arm.

"Good night, Meredith."

"G' night, Derek," I yawned more than said, before slipping off into unconsciousness.

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**A/N: So? Review please :D Remember that you get a teaser with your review reply!**


	9. Chapter 9: A Stranger's Advice

**Bam! I'm back! I hope for good. I had some stuff going on but everything is leveled out, now. Hope you guys are still reading!**

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Three weeks. It had been three weeks since I had woken up in Derek's bed, and I still couldn't help but smile at the mere thought of him - I was excited, I guess. I wasn't too sure as to how I was supposed to go about this _relationship._ The word sounded as foreign as "boyfriend," but I liked the way they both felt on my tongue. We hadn't labeled ourselves, so I kept myself from calling Derek my boyfriend outside of the sanctity of my room.

I wasn't sure if the three weeks had flown by or dragged on slowly, and that kind of concerned me. The way time passed when I was with Derek was strange, but I was fine with it. We had cleaned our slate and agreed to start over. As I sat at the kitchen table eating some yogurt before school, I thought back over the past few weeks, and, more specifically, the day I woke up in Derek's bed.

_I woke up slightly disoriented, wondering where I was. I felt something distinctively hard pressing into my lower back and rolled over to see Derek. I was suddenly aware of my need to use the restroom and of the strong arm draped over my body. I tried to slide out from under him, but Derek wasn't having any of that. He gripped my hip in his hand and snuggled up against me. _

"_Derek," I whispered in his ear, rubbing his arm. "Move over, Derek, I need to use your restroom."_

"_No," he mumbled._

"_Derek," I raised my voice a little and tapped his arm. "You need to move! I really have to pee!" He shifted on top of me with a grunt. "Derek! My brother is here!" _

_He was off of me and on the floor in a few seconds, pressing the heels of his hands into his eyes to wake up. I jumped over him and scrambled into the bathroom with no explanations. After washing my hands, washing my face, and fixing my hair into a loose bun on the top of my head, I knocked on the bathroom door and peaked out. Derek was sitting on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands yawning, but he looked up when I looked out._

"_Why did you knock?" he asked, clearing his throat._

"_Well. I seem to remember walking out on you half naked the last time I used your restroom so I thought I would take a precaution this time." _

_He chuckled and flopped back onto his bed. I walked over and hovered awkwardly over him, wondering if I should sit down. He cracked open one bruised eye and looked at me. _

"_May I help you?"_

"_Well I was just wondering. Well, I wasn't wondering anything, actually…so no. You can't help me." _

_He rolled his eyes and chuckled as he pulled me down onto the bed. I sat cross-legged against his torso, my hands ghosting over it. He gave a soft moan of approval and I watched his face relax. Fifteen minutes later or so, I started getting bored and pushed him softly with my hand. _

"_You awake?" I asked. _

"_Well now I am," he grumbled. _

"_Oh. Sorry," I apologized and patted his stomach where I had pushed him. _

_He chuckled quietly and pulled me down next to him, brushing my hair out of my face. He moved towards me and I tensed slightly, worried that we were moving too fast. Again. He surprised me by just pressing his nose to mine and pulling me even closer. _

"_Don't worry, Mer. I'm not gonna kiss you until I know you're ready, but trust me when I say that when you _are_ ready, I'll be all over that." He winked and I almost missed it because of how close our faces were. _

_I didn't answer and didn't think I needed to. _

"_Now. It's Saturday, so what do you want to do? I can take you home if you want, but if you want to hang out I'm up for anything."_

"_Well seeing as how going home would be terribly boring…how about I hang out with you?"_

"_I suppose I can handle that," he smiled. "Stay in or go out?"_

"_I'm all gross and stuff so I think we should stay in."_

"_Good thing I like it when you're all gross and stuff," he scrunched up his nose and smiled at that same time. _

"_Oooh. Maybe I'll stop showering." I winked. _

"_Oh God! That's so hot!" He groaned obnoxiously loud and pulled me on top of him, rolling back on the bed. I laughed and swatted him away so that I could stand up. _

"_Come on! I'm hungry," I complained and pulled on his foot. He sighed and jumped off the bed._

"_I guess we'd better feed you then, huh? Too bad I don't have any grilled cheese," he teased and I slapped his arm. _

_We got to the kitchen and I sat on a barstool while Derek searched for some food. He pulled a container of yogurt out and held it up to me for approval. I scrunched up my face and raised an eyebrow. _

"_I prefer grilled cheese." I grumbled._

"_Oh come on. You'll love this – I promise." _

_He pulled out a spoon and peeled back the foil from the lid. He took a bite from it and moaned in approval, like a parent would do to a child to get them to eat something. I rolled my eyes as Derek scooped up another spoonful. Since he was standing on the opposite side of the counter, he leaned over it to press the spoon against my lips. I begrudgingly opened my mouth and pulled the yogurt off of the spoon. It wasn't half bad and I nodded in approval._

"_Told you," he smiled. I stuck my finger into the container and dotted his nose with the yogurt and he went cross eyed looking at it. I laughed as he did the same to me. I made a spectacle out of trying to get the yogurt with my tongue and Derek laughed heartily. When he stopped laughing, we made eye contact and the sudden tension shocked me. The smile slowly slid off of his face and his eyes darted from my eyes to my lips quickly. I bit my lip and he moved in towards me. This time I didn't tense up, leaning in instead. Our lips were literally millimeters from touching when he spoke. _

"_I _just_ promised you I wouldn't do this," he whispered, the action causing his lips to brush lightly against my own. _

"_Do it." I whispered back, my eyes beginning to flutter._

"_Are you sure?"_

"_Yes!"_

"_I don't want to rush - " I cut him off with my lips, and he responded instantly. After barely a second, he pulled me up and over the counter. I sat on it with my legs hanging off the side while we kissed, his hands on my hips and mine up in his hair. We pulled apart to breathe and he pressed a few more kisses to my lips. _

"_Wow." He muttered with his forehead pressed against mine._

"_Yeah – I'm good." I patted his cheek and pushed him back so I could slide off of the counter. I started walking back towards the stairs and was almost there before Derek wrapped his arms around my waist and spun me around onto the couch. I laughed and pressed myself into the corner of the couch as Derek walked towards me menacingly. _

"_You think you can just push me away and walk off after a kiss like _that_?" He growled with a smile on his face. "Nuh uh, little girl. That's not the way it works." He launched himself at me and tickled me wildly, ignoring my pleas and protests. He stopped and I tried to catch my breath. "You're cute when you're breathless," he smirked and moved next to me. I pushed him playfully and he pulled me against him, nuzzling his nose into my neck. _

We watched movies all day in Derek's room. It was nice and relaxing, and it made me wonder how I had ever thought Derek was an ass. We talked about "us", agreed to wipe the slate clean, and agreed that we would take this relationship slowly. Now, three weeks later, things were still flowing smoothly.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and I knew Derek was here to drive me to school. I finished up my yogurt and threw away the container on my way to grab my backpack. I skipped down the stairs and walked out the door, pulling it shut behind me.

Derek pressed a chaste kiss to my lips and smiled.

"Ready to go?" He asked, pulling his Ray Bans on.

"As I'll ever be." He opened my door for me, as always, and we started the daily trek to school.

Once we arrived, I let out a loud sigh. Things had been a little uncomfortable at school thanks to Addison, but I felt like things were finally starting to settle down and people were moving on to new gossip. Derek didn't say anything, mostly because he didn't need to, and opened my door. I saw some girls in the parking lot glance my way with raised, skeptical eyebrows and I dropped my eyes to the ground. Derek brought himself down to eyelevel with me and put his hands on either side of my face.

"Fuck 'em, Mer," he smirked and pulled his sunglasses off. "Fuck them all." He slid his glasses onto my face and kissed me. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders, slammed my door shut, and we walked into school.

_Fuck 'em all._


End file.
